Life Lessons From an Old Pair of Air Jordan V’s

So I’m home for a bit and I was downstairs the other day doing this and that when I came across a pair of shoes I’d been saving. The Air Jordan V Fire-Red is without a doubt my favorite shoe of all time. Wore some in University and then saved the others. Originally released in something like 1990, they made some “retro” versions in 1999 and sold out instantly… Why am I telling you this?

Well, I had a few pairs and I never wanted to wear them. They were too precious and I had these dreams of saving them for a better / more appropriate time. As a result, I rarely if ever wore them as now was never the right time. There is a cult around these shoes and many other older Air Jordans; a deadstock pair in mint condition is much sought after by collectors. These shoes were always being saved as part of this futuristic fantasy.

Well guess what? I went into the basement recently and pulled them out; they are cracking near the sole. I mean the shoe is 14 years old so I guess it had to happen eventually, right? This reminded me that if you save yourself for the future or stop doing the things you want thinking there will be a better time, you could be really off base. The crack is what comes to a shoe as it ages just like health complications or worse are what come to us as we age.

I’m not saying I should have worn them to the ground with reckless abandon and jumped in deep puddles of black tar as that would be wasteful. I am saying that I should have worn them throughout their life instead of saving them for a fictitious date in the future. The shoes are still functional but shouldn’t be worn as a crack is the start of their demise. This is similar to how when a person starts getting ill, they’re not dead but they certainly aren’t open to the same adventures as before.

We all know that nothing lasts forever but sometimes it’s good to be reminded to do things while we can.

Very well said indeed, that’s why I buy shoes, I make sure that I use it in its full extent and won’t replace them til they worn out. But seriously though, I’m quite thankful that I get to travel for some times with my friends.. for I know that I will totally regret it that I didn’t even take a peek on my own country’s beauty ’til I get old.